Blog

In many Iowa communities, the biggest barrier to growth isn't a lack of jobs or schools — it's housing. Too often, the beautiful Victorian on Main Street that should welcome a new family is sitting...

Last year, a central Iowa man lost $164,000 to an online scammer posing as a romantic partner. By the time local law enforcement could act, the money had vanished — and investigators lacked the...

Grant Wood's "American Gothic" became one of the most recognizable paintings in the country because it captured Iowa in a way Iowans understand. This year, Sierra Cleghorn, a sophomore at Murray...

Two weeks ago, I sat down with producers at a roundtable and got the same question I've heard across all 21 counties: when is Congress going to stop making farmers fight for a waiver every spring...

Iowa's economy is growing fast — creating careers in manufacturing, transportation, public safety, and tech faster than classrooms can train workers to fill them. Closing that gap starts with...

Every year, hundreds of Iowa couples walk into a fertility clinic hoping to start a family. They meet with a physician, weigh the options, and too often, find out that the real barrier to starting...

Iowa runs on small businesses. Nearly 290,000 of them make up 99% of our local establishments, employ almost half our workforce, and keep Main Streets strong across our communities. During National...

Iowa farmers don’t need a history lesson to know the Farm Bill is overdue. It hasn’t been updated into law in eight years — and this week, Washington almost made it nine.  After three years of...

Iowa competes on a global stage every single day — and Iowa’s farmers, small businesses, and manufacturers need certainty to win.  Zoom out: Iowa farmers and manufacturers exported over $16 billion...

One year ago, I stood at the Ember Recovery Campus to cut the ribbon on a first-of-its-kind youth recovery center. Yesterday, I returned to keep building on that progress. What's new: We secured $1...

In Iowa, dogs are family. They're also hunting partners, farm dogs, service animals, and the first ones at the door when the kids get home. Protecting them from cruelty and protecting the traditions...

Iowa is home to more than 175,000 veterans. Their stories — the battle-buddy jokes, the lifelong friendships forged in uniform, and the sacrifices made during deployments — are too often tucked away...

Last year, Iowa farmers exported more than $225 million in soybeans, corn, beef, pork, and dairy to Taiwan — already America's fourth-largest trading partner. With a new trade agreement on the...

It’s Tax Day, and for Iowa families, this year feels different.  Erika, who manages a bar in Ankeny, told me that most of her income comes from tips — money she relies on for rent, groceries, and...

Iowa has almost 400 different law enforcement agencies — most of them small departments serving tight-knit communities where officers know the people they’re protecting. The problem: Iowa’s...

More than 11,000 kids in Iowa are growing up in military families. They may not wear the uniform, but they carry the weight of service every single day.  For some, that means moving to a new town —...

Every Iowa family deserves safe drinking water every time they turn on the tap — which is why Congress passed bipartisan legislation to invest more than $50 billion in water infrastructure and...

With just one week until Tax Day, Iowa families are double-checking the numbers — making sure they're not sending a dollar more than necessary to Washington. Zoom in: We’ve fought to keep more of...

Easter has always been one of the most meaningful days of the year for our family — a powerful reminder that even after life’s darkest moments, there is renewal, redemption, and hope. Across Iowa,...

Let’s be honest — nobody likes dealing with the IRS.  Whether you’re trying to fight an unfair ruling on your own, paying out of pocket for an expensive tax professional, or opening a letter in the...